Page 15 of Promising You
“Yes, you can come in.”
She notices Katy in my arms and her eyes get big. “Did Katy sleep in your bed? I let my dolls sleep with me, too, but they take turns because they don’t all fit in the bed.”
“Yep, she slept right beside me.”
“Are you leaving now?” She sounds so sad.
“I think we’re having breakfast first. You want to come with me?”
She nods repeatedly and grabs my hand.
Katherine’s already in the dining room having coffee. Lilly runs up and hugs her. “Hi, Mom.”
I remember Garret saying that Katherine doesn’t allow Lilly to call her ‘mommy’ because it sounds too babyish and she wants Lilly to act mature for her age. But Lilly still calls Mr. Kensington ‘daddy,’ so he must’ve won that battle.
“Good morning, Lilly. Jade.” Katherine smiles at me. Her smile always looks forced. Now I know why.
“Good morning, Katherine.” I sit down across from her, smiling back. “So I guess you’ll be glad to finally get rid of Garret and me.”
My comment makes her spill some of her coffee. She sets her cup on the saucer. “Not at all. Mr. Kensington and I love having you both here. We’re sad to see you go.”
“Please don’t go, Jade,” Lilly says. “Please!”
“Lilly, it’s rude to beg,” Katherine scolds. “And we’ve talked about this. Jade is very busy with school. She doesn’t have time to play with you anymore.”
“But she signed a paper. Now she has to play with me.”
“What paper?” Katherine asks.
“I signed a document saying I would play with Lilly,” I answer. “It’s very official. Your husband made it himself.” I smile again just to piss her off.
“I see.” Katherine’s normally expressionless face springs to life. She’s definitely pissed. To the point that she can’t sit at the table a second longer. She gets up from her chair. “I need to attend to some things. Have a good trip, Jade. And good luck with school next semester.” She hurries out of the room.
Garret walks in moments later. “Hey, breakfast with my two favorite girls. How did I get so lucky?” He’s in a really good mood. Probably because we’re finally getting the hell out of here.
Lilly hops down from her chair and gives him a hug. She’s big into hugs, just like Garret. He obviously taught her that. I’ve never seen Katherine hug anyone.
“Are you ready to go?” I ask as he sits down across from me.
He grabs a pastry from the tray. “Yeah, I just need an okay from the doctor before we leave.”
“Why? Is something wrong?”
“He just wants to check that everything’s healing like it should. Then he’s giving me a shot to curb the pain. The pills just aren’t doing the job.”
“Garret, why didn’t you tell me you were in pain? Let’s just forget the trip. We’ll do it later when you feel better.”
“We’re not doing it later. New Year’s Eve only comes once a year. I’ll be fine.” He pours himself some juice. “Have you seen my dad? He told me to check in with him before we left but I can’t find him.”
“I think he’s already at the office,” I say, knowing he left hours ago.
“Then I guess whatever he had to tell me wasn’t that important.”
“Garret, are you ready?” An older man in a suit walks into the dining room. It’s the same man I saw the night that Garret was shot. He was one of the four men who came in and took Garret away in a van. Mr. Kensington said the men were doctors and that the van was a mobile medical unit. I never did find out where they took Garret that day.
Rule number one. Don’t ask questions. Mr. Kensington told me that several times after the incident with Sinclair. So I never asked. And Garret never told me.
“Yeah, I’m ready.” Garret finishes his orange juice and follows the man out.
